I received an ARC, of Retreat to the Spanish Sun, by Jo Thomas. This is a lovely book. I really liked Eliza, and glad she found Josep. Spain is a glorious setting, did not love the pigs, but it was an interesting story line.

This book was so much fun to read. Following Eliza through her so called 'home stay' in Spain to finish her assignment and relax away from her adult children returning to her home to stay! Follow along with her good and bad decisions, her new friends and a place that she truly feels at home amongst the pigs! A great fun and witty read. thank you Jo Thomas :)

Absolutely loved this book. I love the friendships and relationships with Eliza at the central character.

There are some really funny moments in this book.

The explanations of the scenery in Spain are beautiful, it makes me want to visit.

Retreiving the stolen items is a nail biting bit with some comedy in with it and I loved it.

Another great read by Jo Thomas.

I received an arc from NetGalley Shelf and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I totally loved this book. It’s incredibly well written with beautifully real characters to engage your interest, and in home you become emotionally invested.

Eliza and Josep are a wonderful h/H and really enjoyed their journey to a happy ending. But it wasn’t just the romance that satisfied me. It was also about their individual journey to personal satisfaction.

The cast of characters was well developed and I liked the element of the thriller in the rescue of the real Iberico hams.
This would be 5 stars but the ending was abrupt, and I would have liked a much more detailed epilogue. Once Eliza had realised she wanted a life in Spain with Josep, I wanted more about that life.

I want to read more by this author. Recommend this very highly. 4 stars.

Absolutely love this book! Jo did not disappoint again!
These characters are so fabulous!
Jo writes in such a way that I find I'm reading and then i've lost 2 hours and I've nothing left but still want more!

I absolutely loved this book with its fantastic cast of characters, how I would love to be part of the Spanish Conversation Club….sounds like so much fun! It really is a lovely read, and I’m so glad that Eliza Bytheway found herself . Gorgeous book highly recommended.

Take a journey with Eliza and experience the Spanish sunshine, relaxed way of life, romance and pigs. That is what happens when Eliza, divorced mother of three adult children decides to sign up as a house sitter for two adorable dogs and a farm load of prize pigs. Anticipating a chance to finally finish her university course work enabling her to pursue a new career, Eliza decides she needs a complete change of scenery and Spain is the answer. However on arrival her ‘boss’ isn’t as forthcoming and friendly as she expects and leaves in a hurry with just a couple of rules - no parties and don’t allow the dogs on the bed.

Feeling the need to explore Eliza finds new friends in the ex-pat language group, a exceptionally friendly bar owner, a lovely welcoming shop owner selling local produce and a knowledgeable waiter/student who has a love of pig farming. This proves vital when the man left in charge of looking after the pigs at the house disappears and underhanded behaviour rears it’s head. What have the local male dominated Gastronomy group have to do with it? Why hasn’t Eliza heard from the house owner? A strange sighting of an animal in the woods and when some prized produce goes missing Eliza rallies the support of her new friends to put right a long-standing wrong.

I won’t tell any more as you need to read this amazing new book from Jo Thomas. She never disappoints with her exceptional descriptions and research which ultimately makes for an unputdownable read. Thank you Jo.

Yet another wonderful book by Jo!
Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for this book. It felt so good to be in Spain, the story and setting felt authentic and it was a fabulous read.

This is the the third book that I have read by Jo Thomas and I really love the escapism of the stories. Eliza who is the heroine of the story needs to find herself after years of being a Mum and bringing up children. She has lost who she really is and when an opportunity comes along to house sit in a farmhouse in Spain she grabs it with two hands and leaves her grown up children to fend for themselves.
I really enjoyed this story and I wanted to get to the end to find out whether Eliza got her happy ending or not. I always want to race through Jo Thomas's books to get to the end and then I am sad that I have finished it. Looking forward to the next one.

What a fantastic writer Jo Thomas is, I loved everything about this book, the setting, the character and the food. All seems well when Eliza accepts a house sitting job in Spain where she hopes to find peace and quiet. However, it’s the start of her adventure when she makes new friends at the tapas bar including Juan with his adventurous cooking skills. Plus, she ends up looking after pigs, which includes giving the boar a daily massage. Such an interesting read with so much going on including a bit of a mystery. There was so much to like in all the characters plus lots of laughs at their antics. So deserving of more than five stars.

Another great book from Jo Thomas. A lovely romance that blossoms. Always authentic in settings this time in Spain. You are transported to the sounds, smell and authenticity of the place. A very enjoyable read. Interesting and likeable characters, great descriptive writing.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers Random House Transworld UK for an Arc in exchange for an honest opinion

I loved this story. It had everything I enjoy- an escape from mundane life in another country, finding what you are good at right under your nose and a little bit of romance. What I particularly loved was that Eliza didn’t rely on a man and love to ‘save her’ , it was an addition to the story. Love a strong, independent woman lead character and I really enjoyed reading about how the hams are bred to taste so good!
Perfect read.

What a delightful love story. After raising her children she decided to go to college to try and better herself. However her grown up children come back home to her small flat and she decides to house sit to get some peace and quiet. She ends up in Spain looking after pigs and also helping out in the local tapas bar. She rights a few wrongs including the Gastronomique Society. And when Josep comes home sparks begin to fly.

Loved this so much! As a busy mum sometimes as much as you love your children you just want to be you and not mum and have space. This story following such a mum really left me feeling envious and dreaming of the sun on my face. I loved how it kept me guessing what was going to happen and I honestly couldn't figure out which way the story was going. Also loved the empowering of women behind the story. Brilliant easy read!!

I’ve always loved Jo Thomas books and this one didn’t disappoint at all full of retreating to Spain making a new life and new friends and of course plenty about farming pigs and learning about yourself and finding love again. It’s lovely being in Spain and a heartwarming read.
Eliza is divorced with three children who have grown up but all come back home to live she has no space todo her essay and work and she gets the chance to go to Spain to look after a house on a farm while the owner is away so she sets off for Spain. She arrives and the owner explains she must party and people mustn’t know he’s not there but she’s not expecting to mix with people just relax and find herself and finish her essay. She goes into town and gets put off when the gastrointestinal society refuse to let woman or expats and she soon makes friends with the ex pat community. She sees the prized pigs on the farm and soon learns they are worth more than she thought. Problem is when the man that looks after them disappears and she can’t get hold of the owner so what does she do. She starts after being shown what to do caring for them herself but the owner appears back and she feels she’s let him down as some of his prize meet has gone missing while she was looking after the house. When she also realises that owners prize meat is being sold of cheaply and things aren’t right. Herself and the ex pat community set to sort and get his meat back and in among all this will she find romance with the man she never expected and will she find herself again instead of caring for her children.
Perfect book to curl up and read and dream of the sun.

No-one can beat the way this author describes food. Its phenomenal. However, the storyline in this didn't completely transport me. England was soon abandoned and then the plot felt a bit slow for a while. Nice characters and sense of setting.

Yet another great book from Jo, her stories are always very well written and a pleasure to read. Characters and settings are really dealt with in the best possible way and I am giving this 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this e ARC

A lovely new book from Jo with all the usual ingredients - new country, new food, (yum!) and wonderful characters. This time there is a crime at the heart of the book and Eliza throws herself into trying to solve it. The whole book is a delight, hope, friendship and warmth; all the things Jo does so well. The pigs are extra characters, especially the boar Banderas, and it was great to learn about Iberico ham.
Sunshine, fun and romance, a perfect summer read, but a treat in a bleak January!

Very happy to read another Jo Thomas book for review, and hats off to Jo for writing my books. Perfect for everyone, but especially people who feeling overwhelmed by life and in need of time to consider the options. Eliza wow the moment she got into her car in her dressing gown to get some peace I knew she was going to be a brilliant character. She exceeded my expectations maybe the boar massage or contemplating making spikey hair with shampoo. ELIZA is lovable and sad all at the same time, no matter what I needed her to succeed.

Jo Thomas books are descriptive to the point you can close your eyes and smell the ham. She gave Eliza some tough choices in the most beautiful of places.

This is another 5 star read for me by Jo Thomas, she is now a go to author. I will buy whatever she delivers as I don't doubt her books deliver and I am left wanting more everytime.

#Netgalley  #Retreattothespanishsun #JoThomas #Books2022

Another amazing read by this author whose books just keep getting better and better I was so excited to see that jo Thomas has a new book our abs couldn’t wait to get started. This was a fabulous escapism read and provided a much needed pick me up from
The dull dark days of January and made me feel lovely and warm and cosy inside and gave me a lift. As always this author creates likeable and relatable characters and focuses on events which are real ans understandable to all.

This was a bit like a modern day Shirley Valentine in some ways Eliza is a woman of a certain age wanting to escape the drudgery of her day to day life and to feel like she is doing something more with her life rather than just being a mum and wants to challenge herself with something new and her escape to the Spanish sun provided her with much more than the idyllic location and peace and quiet and sunshine she craved in fact it proved to be anything but quiet and tranquil and came with its own challenges that Eliza
Hit head on abs which gave her the confidence to find what really made her happy and what she really wanted in her life.

I absolutely love how jo Thomas encapsulates the reader into the story abs makes them feel like they have been transported to the locations of her books and taking on a journey of their own. I felt like I could smell the surroundings and taste the Olives and bask in the sun every time I turned a page and made me wish I was following in Eliza footsteps. This was so much more than a romantic escapism read. It was also about finding yourself and that if you put your mind to it then anything is possible and that life can sometimes take on an incredible twist when you least
Expect it.